Lamp socket device



y 25, 1939- c. A. WOODWARD LAMP SOCKET DEVICE Filed Sept. 22, 1937- I fnvenivzw CZemeni c/iI Vbadward. 3/ e555 Patented July 25, 1939 UNITED. STATES LAMP socKE'r DEVICE Clement A. Woodward, Roslindale, Mass, assignor to United-Carr Fastener Corporation, Cambridge, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application September 22, 1937, Serial No. 165,113'

Claims. (Cl. 17s 3a9) My invention relates to an improved lamp socket device having snap fastener means for attaching it to a supporting structure.

In the drawing, which illustrates a preferred form of my invention:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of an installation showing my improved socket device installed in a panel;

7 Fig. 2 is a rear elevation of the installation shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the installation shown in Figs. 1 and 2with the addition of alight bulb;

Fig. 4 is a section taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a section taken along the line 5-5 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 61s a front view of the attaching member of my socket device; v

Fig. 'I is a side view of the attaching member shown in Fig. 6; and

w Fig. 8 is a view similar to that of Fig. 7 but with the attaching member rotated 45.

An object of my invention is to provide an im-.

proved lamp socket device of the type adapted to be easily and quickly detachably'secured to a. panel or other supporting structure solely by a simple snap fastener means easily applied as a part of the device. A further object of my invention is to provide a lamp socket having yieldable attaching fingers so disposed in relation to the lamp socket that they maybe extended through a minimum sized aperture in. the sup- I porting structure for the purpose of securing the socket to the structure. 7. v

Referring to Figs. 1-5 of the drawing, I have shown for purposes of description a tubular metal shell I of the type which is adapted particularly for:use with a single contact lamp of'the type now commonly used on automobile installations.

It should be remembered, however, that my invention is not limited to this particular type of socket shell and that changes may be made to accommodate difierent types of lamps without departe ingfrom the spirit and intent of my invention.

The tubular shell I constitutes a socket for a lamp base and a support for an electrical contact member (not shown) which is adapted to 'transmitcurrent to the lamp. The shell I is preferably formed of sheet metal through a drawing or folding operation and is provided with an opening 2 at one end for permitting passage of a conductor (not shown) into the shell. ,The

shell I is open at its end opposite to that having the aperture 2 forthe purpose of receiving a base 3 of a lamp 4 (Fig. 2). The lamp 4 is secured to the shell I, in my. preferred form, through means of pins-5 (Fig. 3) extending from the lamp base 3and cooperating with bayonet slots 6 formed in the shell in the manner well known in the art.

- As a means for attaching the socket device to a supporting structure by a snap fastener action, I have providedan attaching member which has a collar portion adapted, preferably, to be press-fitted to the outer surface of the tubularshell at a desired point between its ends. The attaching member, as clearly illustrated in Figs.

- 6-8, comprises a collar I which preferably is in the form of a continuous ring disposed at one end of the attaching member. oppositely-disposed yieldable fingers 8 integral with the collar 1 are adapted'to extend from the collar into an aperture 9 of a supporting structure III. The

fingers 8 have shoulder means II adjacent their free ends for spring engagement with material of the supporting structure I0 adjacent the aperture 9 for securing the socket device to the structure. It will be noticed-that the fingers 8' preferably extend from the collar I at such an angle relativeto the outer surface of the shell I when the attaching member is aflixed thereto that they are disposed in the closest possible relation to the surface of the shell, but, at the 'same time, al-. lowing a minimum distance between thefingers and the outer surface of the shell'so as to permit yielding of the fingers for carrying out the snap fastener action. As a means for limiting movement of the shell I axially of the aperture 9, I have provided, in my preferred form, a pair of substantially rigid stop fingers I2, each of which extends from the collar I away from the axial line of the attaching member and then in substantially parallel relation to the axial line, as

most clearly shown in Figs. 5 and 8. ,The outermost free'ends of the fingers I2 are adapted to In assembling the parts of my installation together, the attaching member is securedto the shell I through press-fitting the collar! to the outer surface of the shell ata predetermined distance between the ends thereof. Alamp may;

- support-engaging now be secured to the lamp-receiving end of the as to insert the lamp and fingers in the aperture 9, which is larger thanthe diameter of the lamp but smaller in diameterthan the distance between outside surfaces of the fingers 8, at points between the shoulders II and the outermost tips of the fingers. Then pressure is exerted on the shell I which acts as a handle for the device and the socket is moved toward the aperture 9 until the outermost free ends of the stop fingers l2 abut the surface of the supporting structure l0 (Fig. 5). When the socket device is in this position the shoulders ll of the spring fingers 8 engage material of the supporting structure adjacent the aperture 9 (Figs. 3 and 1) whereby the device is rigidly held in position upon the support ID. If it is desired, the socket may be secured to the support before inserting the lamp in the socket. Thus my improved device may be used whether or not the structure to which it is attached is accessible from both sides.

While I have illustrated and described a preferred form of my invention, I do not wish to be limited thereby because the scope of my in- .vention is best defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1. An electric socket device including a shell part having integral lamp-receiving and holding means adjacent to one end, a second part having a collar-like portion engaging the outer surface of said shellpart and permanently attaching the second part to the shell part, yieldable fingers extending from said collar portion toward that end of the shell part having the lamp-holding means, said fingers be ing provided with support contacting means for snap fastening engagement with a support when passed into an aperture in the support, and support-engaging shoulders carried by the second part and located between the free ends of said yieldable fingers and said collar portion to con-' tact said support at that side from which the.

fingers are entered into support.

2. An electric socket device including a shell part having integral lamp-receiving andholding means adjacent to one end, a second part havinga collar-like portion engaging the outer surface of said shell part and permanently attachingthe second part to the shell part, yieldable the aperture in the support-engaging fingers extending from said collar portion toward that end of the shell part having the lamp-holding means, said fingers having their free ends located farthest from the collar portion and having support-contacting means between the free ends and the collar portion arranged to snap into engagement with a support through an aperture therein, and support-engaging shoulder means on said second part located between the contacting means and the collar portion for limiting the movement of the fingers through the aperture.

3. An electrical socket device for insertion in substantially tubular shell having means at one end for receiving and holding a lamp base and the like, a metal collar fitted around the outer surface of said shell, integral yieldable fingers extending from said collar and having means'for enga eends.

ment with a part of the supporting structure whereby said socket is detachably secured to said structure, and substantially rigid fingers extending from said collar in the same direction as said yieldable fingers, said rigid fingers having free end portions adapted to engagea surface of said supporting structure for limiting axial movement of said shell relative to an aperture in said support.

'4. An electric socket pended from an device adapted to be susiridependently positioned support by engagement with an aperture in the support, comprising 'a substantially cylindrical shell having an open end into which the lamp base may be inserted to be directly supported by the shell and having provision for retaining the lamp therein, a second part formed as a single piece and comprising a tubular collar encircling the exterior of the shell and attached thereto, spring fingers spaced radially of the shell extending from the collar in the direction of the open end of the shell and having toward their distal end portions successively outwardly slopingly diverging and inwardly slopingly converging whereby when the socket is grasped-at the rear of the shell the ends may be presented to the aperture in the support and pressed thereagainst to cause the junctions of said portions to pass the margin of the aperture by inward fiexure of the fingers and the diverging portions to ride forwardly across such margin, said second part also including approximately radially disposed shoulder portions in a plane corresponding substantially to the inner ends of said outwardly diverging portions for contacting the support outwardly of the aperture therein on the side from which the fingers are entered into the aperture to be heldpressed thereagainst by the resilient expansion of the fingers.

5. An electric socket device adapted to be suspended from an independently positioned support by engagement with an aperture in the support, comprising a substantially cylindrical shell having an open end into which the lamp base may be inserted to be directly supported by the shell and having provision for retaining the lamp therein, a second part formed as a single piece and comprising a tubular-collar encircling the exterior of the shell and attached thereto, spring fingers spaced radially of the shell extending from the collar in the direction of the open end on the side from which the fingers are entered ,into the aperture for limiting movement of the fingers axially through the aperture so that said socket device maybe suspended from the support by engagement of opposed faces of the support between said shoulder portions and outwardly inclined portions of said convexed finger -CLEMENT A. WOQDWARD.

aperture ofthe support and. 

